- It's tempting to step into a project and reboot
with an entirely new vision and look,
but that can be too drastic and lose the audience's loyalty.
The original design may have elements
or concepts that have equity.
A badly drawn logo might be loved by the audience,
willing to forgive the ugliness
or something dated might be so closely linked to the brand
that losing it is a mistake.
In these instances,
the solution is often an evolution of the existing.
You'll need to first determine
if anything existing has equity with the audience.
If so, does this outweigh the benefits
of a completely brand new approach?
I've had clients insist that everyone loves
and recognizes their logo perfectly,
but in reality only the client does.
You can only understand the reality through research,
talking to the audience internally and externally
and finding examples of the graphic history
of the organization.
It's important to know what worked and didn't work
with previous versions.
So let's assume you've determined
that the issue is an evolution.
How do I start?
Depending on the type of project,
I make a list of elements with equity
and provide visual examples.
If it's a logo project,
I might show the original in the context of the competition
to prove that it is recognizable
and I make clear what does not have equity
by identifying specifics such as color, tag line,
or type of imagery.
The client may be certain
that the current tag line is linked to the brand.
But from your research,
you determined that nobody remembers it.
For the design process, start with the existing design.
As an example, if I'm working with an identity project,
I start with the current mark and slowly modify it.
I do this on 11 by 17 size pages and keep each iteration.
I make an adjustment, save that version, duplicate,
and make an adjustment and so on.
The end result will be an evolution from the original mark
to one that is slightly different
and then very different
and all the steps in between.
The same process works well
with other design projects as well.
I can slowly modify over several steps a website,
publication, signage, whatever the project.
The point is to save each step along the way.
The most radical change may be wrong,
but you won't know until you take the work
to that end of the spectrum.
This process also helps the client
to understand the reasons for a change.
He or she may be emotionally connected
to the original design.
The shock value is minimized
when I show the slow evolution to the right solution.
With an evolution,
there are times when I want to throw the work
across the room.
I can become very frustrated
and want to start fresh with something brand new.
But I remember that my job is not to put my stamp
on every project.
It's to help the client succeed.
And the best way to do this is to identify the issues,
evaluate existing equity, and craft something impeccable.